Purpose: To obtain detailed knowledge about interventions that can prevent violent outcomes in order to limit the need for the use of any coercive measures in the regional security departments, from experienced psychiatric nurses' perspective. The following question is sought answered: What describes nurses as important coping methods in meeting patients where violence risk is considered high.

Litterature review: The primary grounding is taken in Peplau, Travelbee and Vatne. Research from closed psychiatric wards with violence and use of restraint is presented and used in this study.

Method: The study is conducted in three regional security wards in Norway. Using a qualitative design, with individual interviews of nine psychiatric nurses. They have an average of 12.8 years of experience in regional security wards. Data are analyzed based on Kvale's descriptions.

Results: Three key themes related to violence prevention interventions were identified 1) the environments importance of the physical safety and structural arrangements must be good enough, and adapted to specific requirements. 2) The nurses experience in the face of high risk describes nurses' experiences of stress and challenges they have experienced when they handled the high violence risk, where the possibility of even being attacked have been present. 3) Cooperation with colleagues has a central role in how it is possible for nurses to deal with high violence risk with minimal use of restraint.4) The interaction between nurse and patient is the fourth issue, and must be understood in the light of the surroundings, the experience and cooperation inside the nursing group.

Conclusion: To practice psychiatric nursing in environmental therapeutic forms at the Regional psychiatric security wards, the nurses compensate for a high degree of control and guarding role. It requires an interaction with a competent staff group. Individual inner confidence and implied by other personnel expectations is necessary. The nurses then create a safe predictability of opportunity for early enough intervention, and provide a protective effect that reduces the coercive use. Future challenges seem to be the securing the staff, so that they dare to be with patients even when they are aggressive. Safety must be ensured that staff are long enough time by departments to achieve satisfactory experience, because experience provides safe and calm environments. The security safeguards respect and equality with the patients.